IT'S OUR LIFE AND LIFE IS GOOD!

Friday's : HOW PINTERESTING!

2012-01-27T06:00:00.000-07:00

Since the Day of Love is right around the corner, I thought I'd share some fun VALENTINEY (is that a word?) things from Pinterest.

ps- For some reason the link feature would not work!!!

Shot from landee see landee do

http://www.landeeseelandeedo.com/2012/01/valentine-photo-card-ideas.html

May the Force by with you. . . . from Brassy Apple
http://brassyapple.blogspot.com/2012/01/star-wars-valentine-for-boys.html

I 'mustache' you a questions. . . from The Craft Monkey
http://thecraftmonkey.blogspot.com/2011/02/valentines-are-done-man.html

100 things I love about you. . . .from a guest blogger on The Dating Divas
http://www.thedatingdivas.com/holidays/valentines-day/guest-blogger-sisters-stuff/

me, you, movie, tonight. . . from One crazy cookie

http://onecrazycookie.blogspot.com/2011/02/couple-quick-cute-valentine-gifts.html

Red Velvet cookies from polli blog

http://www.polliblog.com/2011/02/red-velvet-whoopie-pies.html

You can follow me on Pinterest here: http://pinterest.com/rachaelcollinz/

If you haven't yet joined the latest and AWESOMEST thing ever!!!, PINTEREST, and you'd like an invite, send me an email (clintandrachael at gmail dot com) with Pinterest as the subject and I'll send you one. ;)

Dear Teenager,

2012-01-26T06:00:00.000-07:00

Pinterest Source

I am not your friend, I am your parent! I will Stalk you, Flip out on you, Lecture you, Drive you insane, Be your Worst Nightmare and Hunt you DOWN when needed (you better believe it!).

Do you ever have ~~Fights~~ disagreements with your teens? Please tell me I'm not the only one? For example. . .say you really don't like long hair on your teenage boy because you think it looks sloppy, unkempt, and people often mistake him as homeless. But (for some strange reason) he loves it, thinks it's hot, cool, etc, whatever (insert eye roll here)!, and can't be happy unless his hair is over his ears, past the collar, and long enough over his eyes, that if you look VERY closely (and I mean very closely) you just might get a peek of an eyeball or two (AS IF!).

And I'm sure none of your teens have Selective Hearing? For example they hear "yes, you can go to your friends" but for some reason (still unknown to man) they don't hear the "but you need to be home by 5:00" part.

As hard as it is to be the parent of a teen or (gasp!) multiple teens at the same time, and no matter how much hair I ~~you~~ we pull out (ours not theirs) or the hours of sleep they cause us to lose, the love we (their parents) have for them will never change.

I pray my kids know my love for them is unconditional, and what I am 'forced' as their parent to do (that always seems to embarrasses them, make them mad, or even worse, cry) is all a part of that unconditional love.

Because I love you. When you understand that I know you are a responsible adult (even if it takes until you're 35). YOu will NEVER find someone who Loves, Prays, Cares, and Worries for you MORE THAN ME (your mother).

Don't Forget to LOOK UP!

2012-01-24T06:00:00.001-07:00

Kit from Everydaymomideas.com

Have you ever had one of those days? Today I woke up to things really not going my way. Just silly things really. . . I wasn't feeling well. My favorite cereal was all gone. Someone (who shall remain nameles5) spilled their full cup of chocolate milk. My younger kids were fighting, then whining, then fighting again. I'd had enough! So I left, locked myself in my bedroom, and cried, then prayed and cried to Heavenly Father. I felt a little better. Not much later I was reminded of this video:

And that Bad days, and things, and experiences are part of God's plan for me, for us. They can be a "Beautiful Heartbreak" if we allow them to. I remember hearing a true story about the Prophet Joseph Smith. He was given the privilege of seeing some of his apostles (who at the time were serving missions outside the country). They were having a bad day too, and were pleading with Heaven for some relief. What the Prophet witnessed, that they didn't, was that the Savior was right above them, crying with them. He felt their pain, and He was there to help them, if only they would 'LOOK UP'.

Remember the talk from last conference where Elder Carl B. Cook said this, "encouragement to LOOK UP is a metaphor for remembering Christ. As we remember Him and trust in His power, we receive strength through His Atonement. It is the means whereby we can be relieved of our anxieties, our burdens, and our suffering."

So the next time YOU or I have a bad day, or an experience that breaks our heart and makes us cry and want to give up and just crawl back in bed, let us remember to LOOK UP, and turn to our Savior. Let the power of His Atonement relieve our sadness, our pains, our burdens.

Disney Trip Conclusion (aren't you glad?)

2012-01-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

Day 3 of our 3-day trip to the Disneyland Resort was crazy, busy. Everyone was at the Parks for the Holiday kick-off. Lines were long. . . we were tired (too much walking. Did I mention we walked from our hotel to the resort and then back again each day? (1 mile/each way)). . . but it was still a super fun day. We hit everyone's favorite rides one last time, and splurged on ice cream and corndogs (yum!). We went to both Disneyland and California Adventure this day. Here are a few of my favorite photos from day 3:

The lady that made it all happen. My awesome sister, Aunt K. Isn't she beautiful?

Cheesey, I know. . . #3

Bonding with Grandpa, #5

While we were waiting and watching for this, a woman stepped right in front of Gram D, who was stuck in her wheelchair. Gram D used her cane, to tap the lady on the shoulder ( I was embarrassed Gram was hitting with her cane), and then asked if she would please move over. The lady didn't. She just turned back around and stayed right where she was. RUDE!

In front of Grizzly Falls

Here they come. Can you spot anyone familiar?

We saw lots of celebrities, and even took our picture with some. (I love how my nephew is holding the princess' hand.)

Victorious!!!!

Sun, Fun, & a Baby too

2012-01-21T12:24:00.001-07:00

I'm in Phoenix, AZ with my sister & her husband picking up their new baby boy. They are adopting him from a troubled but very sweet single mom of two. She decided she has her hands full & wants a better life for herself, the children she already has, & this precious baby she just gave birth to. To give up your baby so he can have a better life, What an Act of Love!! I'm so glad I get to be a part of this.
More to come. . .

Disneyland Trip (part 5)

2012-01-20T06:00:00.000-07:00

Disney's California Adventure

Day two was spent at Disney's California Adventure park. The older kids like this park better. The only bummer was Grizzly Rapids ride was closed. So sad. :(

1. Grandpa took #5 & #6 on a little date to ride the rides in Bug's Life world

2. Little Mermaid ride (Gram held Clint's hand the entire ride. .. ahhh How Sweet)

3. #5 mesmorized by our Under the Sea Adventure

4. #6 hanging in the stroller and super cute in pigtails (which she pulled out, see photo 7).

5. My cute little nephew watching for everyone to pass by on the Roller Coaster

6. Awesome Bro-in-law, Uncle S. with #5 and #6.

7. Riding Heimlich's Chew Chew Train is #2 & 6 (& let's not forget Baby that she carried around all day), grandpa, grandma, and uncle S.

What exciting ride did sweet little 88 year old Gram D go on this day, you ask? I think this photo says it all. . . .

Oh yeah, the Tower of Terror Baby! Clint says his leg is still sore from where Gram D was squeezing it on this ride. BaWaHAHA HAHA! Love it!!!

Scriptures and Star Wars?

2012-01-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

image credit

I am not really a big Star Wars fan (I know, I know). AND Yes, I've seen the movies, once, long, long ago when they first came out. (I can't help it, I'm more the Romantic Comedy type). I recently stumbled upon this fun acronym for studying the scriptures. C3PO. And even though I don't really like Star Wars, I thought this was cool. Here's how it works:

C= commitment

Make a commitment about when and where and for how long you will study.

P= prayer

Pray before you read and as you read. "Heavenly Father, help me understand the messages that are meant for me. Help me know the truth of these things. . . ."

P= pencil

Mark the scriptures as you read. Turn them into a treasure map so that you can return at appropriate times to review the things you have learned. Take notes and record insights in your scripture journals.

P= ponder

Take time to think about what you have read and to ask yourself some questions: Why is this account or story or verse or word in the book? Why was this included? What does it mean to me?

O= obey

Do the things the scriptures and the Spirit teach you to do.

I saw this idea here.

#5 turns 5!!!

2012-01-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

My sweet #5 is 5 years old today! Where did those years go? Here are 5 things about #5 . . . .

1. She is still a Girly-Girl. She loves dressing up (she's even been known to 'borrow' clothing and jewelry from my closet), painting nails (hers and everyone else's), doing hair (she is getting really good at doing her own. Pigtails and ponytails are her forte'). She usually carries a purse of some sort with her where ever she goes.

2. She is the BEST BIG SISTER. She implements what she learns from her big sister, #2, and holds. hugs, helps, tickles, and watches out for her little sister.

3. Her best pal is still her 'Soft Blanky'. She loves that thing and sleeps with it every night.

4. She is still a Daddy's Girl. She has daddy wrapped around her little finger. She loves going on daddy-daughter dates, and asks her daddy out almost daily (probably because he spoils her).

5. She has the biggest prettiest blue eyes. And the cutest laugh.

We are so thankful Heavenly Father sent this precious daughter to our family.

Disneyland (part 4)

2012-01-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

Our first official day at the Disneyland Resort, we spent at Disneyland. It was all decorated for the upcoming Christmas Holiday. We had fun hanging out with each other and of course riding the rides. Gram even went on Space Mountain. WOW! That was fun (I sat next to her for that one). Above is just a sprinkling of pictures from our day. From top to bottom and left to right.

First row- The whole gang minus (grandma and me)
#3 and #4 in line at the Buzz Lightyear ride
Second row- Grandma (my mom) looking for Nemo on the finding Nemo ride.
Gram D, Grandpa (my dad), half of #1, and #2 and #3 in the background just doing what you do best at Disneyland. . . waiting in line.
Bottom row- Sleeping Beauty's Castles all decked out with Christmas decorations and Snow.
#6 with Clint, still looking for Nemo. . .

FYI-
When we go on vacation to Disneyland, we bring food to make our own lunches plus extra so we have lots of snacks (don't want anyone getting grumpy from hunger). This saves us tons of $$$. Just in case you didn't know the food at the Park is expensive, especially for a large family like ours. Everyone makes their own lunch complete with tons of snack food and we backpack it into the park.

Here's #2, Clint, and #4 driving Autotopia Baby!

Grandparents Matter

2012-01-17T13:26:00.003-07:00

This is AWESOME! It is scientically proven that Grandparents Matter. The relationship children have with their grandparents (close-by or living far away) makes a difference in their lives.

The study showed that grandchildren with more grandparent involvement were more likely to:

* look outside of their family and friend circles to reach out to others
* help others even when inconvenient or hard
* be more service oriented and likely to volunteer

"I hope parents will not overlook the potentially powerful asset grandparents can be. Grandparents can be welcomed and listened to in formal councils or on informal occasions. They've walked the road of life 30 or more years longer than anyone else in the council. Even if grandparents live far away, grandchildren can call or email; I know ours do. A single parent may have this resource and may not be utilizing it. Grandparents can be a tremendous resource." - Elder M. Russell Ballard

I'm grateful for the influence of my grandparents, Clint's grandparents, and my children's grandparents (our parents),and for the relationship they have with my family especially my children.

Disneyland (part 3)

2012-01-17T06:00:00.000-07:00

THE GIFT

I have the funniest husband (at least he thinks he is). He loves to joke and tease. It's how he expresses his love. If he likes you, prepare to get teased. :)

Gram (being 88 years young) brought a sunction-on handicap rail to help her in and out of the shower. My dad put it up on the shower wall for her, it fell off. In comes my honey to save the day. Clint puts it up and it stays, that is until later when Gram goes to pull herself up from the bath. *CRASH* She called it a piece of (bad word) and threw it in the garbage. MyMan being the trickster he is, snuck Gram's rail out of the can and wrapped it up. She about died laughing (no pun intended) when she opened her present to find the handicap rail she had thrown away.

Grandma and her "NEW" handicap rail

#2 showing off her cute new shoes.

Disneyland Trip (part 2)

2012-01-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

Remember I mentioned this trip was everyone's birthday gift from my sweet sister and bro-in-law? Well we celebrated 3 "real" birthdays while on this trip. AWESOME, right?

After Vegas, we drove to Barstow, CA. This is a tradition. We can't drive past Barstow without stopping at what we call the TRAIN McDONALD's. Here we ate lunch and celebrated my Gramdma's (we call her Gram D) 88th birthday, and #2's (who was born on Gram D's birthday) 14th birthday.

Gram D's 88th & #2's 14th birthday. I think it's sweet they're holding hands.

1. Birthday Girls plus #5, and #6

2. The Hubs woke up early and ran to a grocery store in Vegas so we would have a cake for the b-day girls. Isn't he awesome?

3. My mom googling something

4. The hubs and #5

5. The BEST Sister in the World

6. #1 and Gram D

7. My Reflection

8. Birthday girl with little sis #6.

9. #5 loved having a whole week with her daddy!

TO BE CONTINUED. . . .

What's your Personal Creed?

2012-01-15T14:38:00.002-07:00

per·son·al/ˈpərsənəl/

adj: of, affecting, or belonging to a particular person rather than to anyone else.

creed/krēd/

n: set of beliefs or principles

When he was just 34 years old, a great man by the name of George Albert Smith, made a list of 11 resolutions or goals (he called it his "personal creed"), that he committed to live by.

Those who knew President Smith said that he really did live by his creed. "He was one of those few people of whom you can say he lived as he taught." - J. Reuben Clark Jr.

Reading this made me think, What kind of a person do I want to be? What principles do I want to base my life on? I'm going to implement some of these and some of my own into My own Personal Creed, and display it where I can see it daily (probably on my bathroom mirror) so I can remember to work on these things daily.

How about you? What's on your Personal Creed?

Click to enlarge, right click to print.

Click HERE to learn more.

Disneyland Trip 2011 (part 1)

2012-01-13T10:50:00.006-07:00

Have I ever mentioned before that I have the greatest sister and brother-in-law? Well, I do. They take such good care of our "little" (I mean BIG) family. They love my kids like their own, and are always taking them out and spending special aunt & uncle/niece & nephew time together. This year they went above and beyond their normal spoilings. Instead of a normal birthday gift, they tookeveryone to Disneyland for their birthday. It was the biggest and best Birthday party ever! Let me share . . . .

We left early afternoon, Sunday November 6th, for the 6 hour drive to VEGAS BABY! I got to ride ALL ALONE with my dad and Grandma for 3 hours. NO KIDS!!! (That was nice.)
Once arriving in Las Vegas all we had time for was a fast-food dinner (Arby's & Jack-in-the-Box) and Bed. The next morning we had a disgusting free continental breakfast of "fake" instant oatmeal, and white bread toast. After repacking the cars, and filling out the "What could we do Better" hotel survey cards (have a better breakfast, of couse),

took a tour of this little historic site:

No star sightings, DARN! (at least not here. . .) TO BE CONTINUED

Don't Forget to Pray!

2012-01-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

Oh, how praying rests the weary!
Prayer will change the night to day;
So when life seems dark and dreary,
Don’t forget to pray.

I confess! I do forget to pray, quite often accually. I don't do it intentionally. I just get busy, task-driven, and it totally slips my mind. I do pour out my heart to him almost constantly throughout the day, but its not a "Formal Kneeling Prayer".
Let me Introduce you to my New Year's Resolution #2. (If you want to know what #1 is go here.) Can you guess what it is? Yep, to have daily, meaningful, intentional, take time out, kneeling personal pray daily.
I am going to start out with just one prayer a day, then work my way up to both morning and night prayer. Now how am I going to remember?

Use a PRAYER ROCK

Set an ALARM- When it goes off, I STOP & KNEEL!

Image Credit

Mark off on a Chart

credit

Hang signs up all around my house

One in the bathroom mirror, over the sink, on the dishwasher, pantry door, fridge, garage door, etc

Click image to enlarge and Print

To make them more meaningful I will follow what President Hinckley and H. Burke Peterson suggest:

"Many of the good people of the world pray. But the trouble with many of our prayers is that we give them as if we were picking up the telephone and ordering groceries---we place our order and hang up. We need to meditate, contemplate, think of what we are praying about and for, and then speak to the Lord as one person speaks to another. . . . Believe in the power of prayer. It is real, it is wonderful, it is tremendous" (Gordon B. Hinckley, Standing for Something, p. 116).

"As you feel the need to confide in the Lord or to improve the quality of your visits with Him - - to pray, if you please - - may I suggest a process to follow: Go where you can be alone, go where you can think, go where you can kneel, go where you can speak out loud to Him. The bedroom, that bathroom, or the closet will do. Now, picture Him in your mind's eye. Think to whom you are speaking, control your thoughts--don't let them wander, address Him as your Father and friend. Now tell Him things you really feel to tell Him--not trite phrases that have little meaning, but have a sincere, heartfelt conversation with Him. Confide in Him, ask Him for forgiveness, plead with Him, enjoy Him, thank Him, express your love to Him, and then listen for His answers. Listening is an essential part of praying.

-H. Burke Peterson, Conference Report from October 1973

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

2012-01-11T06:30:00.000-07:00

Find the Recipe HERE!

Teaching the Importance of the Book of Mormon to Our Children

2012-01-09T18:10:00.000-07:00

Image source

1. READ TO THEM FROM THE BOOK OF MORMON, THEYOUNGER THE BETTER

President Hinckley hascounseled parents :

“Readto your children. . .read to them from the Book of Mormon. It will take time, and you are very busy, butit will prove to be a great blessing in your lives as well as in theirlives. And there will grow in theirhearts a great love for the Savior of the world. . . he will become to them avery real living being.”

President Harold B. Leesays that reading from the scriptures themselves is Vital. “There is something that’smore electric, more spiritual, something that is more deeply meaningful when Iread from the scriptures themselves.”

We need to familiarizeour children with the language of the Book of Mormon itself.

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2. TEACHFROM THE BOOK OF MORMON AS OFTEN AS YOU CAN

-Teach from it duringFHE

-Tells stories from itas Bedtime Stories

Years ago, my mom wastelling my kids the story of Lehi warning the people about the destruction ofJerusalem because everyone was so wicked. And Kelsey asked “Even the girlsgrandma?” As sweet as this was, this wasa good teaching moment for grandma to remind little Kelsey that Satan is realand as hard as it is to believe, He can even Tempt Girls to do bad things.

-Discipline from it

Sister Cheryl Lant at aBYU Women’s Conference said:

“We can be assured thatthe Spirit will aid us in our teaching. He will help us know what to teach, howto teach it, and where in the scriptures we can find help. He can also witnessto our children that what we are teaching them through the scriptures istrue. For Example: Perhaps, in your family, children want tostay up late at night. Rather than scolding them every night about bedtime,turn to the Topical Guide under the word retire.There you will find a reference to Doctrine and Covenants 88:124, partof which says, “Retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary.” Now, thatis great. This tells them not only what to do but also why.”

-Useit to help your kids make decisions

PresidentBenson said, “Our families may becorrupted by worldly trends and teachings unless we know how to use the Book ofMormon to expose and combat falsehoods. Let us use [the Book of Mormon] to judge what we read, the music wehear, the entertainment we watch, the thoughts we think.”

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3. MAKE ITMATTER & MAKE SURE THEY’RE GETTING IT

“The Book of Mormon waswritten for our day. The Nephites never had the book; neither did the Lamanitesof ancient times. It was meant for us.”

One of the most common reasons why our children aren’tinterested in the Book of Mormon is because they have a hard time seeing how ithas anything to do with their lives.

Online I found this blog. It's welcomemessage goes like this:

I got tired of yelling atmy kids, "Sit down and shutup!" during our daily study of The Book ofMormon. Don't we read The Book of Mormon in order to transcend that behavior?Putting myself in my children's shoes, I realized reading The Book of Mormon tothem was like reading a discourse on molecular biology to me. The content isextremely important and applicable, but if I don't understand it, it meansnothing to me. I wanted to find ways to bring The Book of Mormon down to thekids' level, and make it applicable and exciting to them.
So she decided to come upwith discussion topics and activities to give the Book of Mormon more meaningto her children. She says:

“My goal is not to read every verse in the Book ofMormon nor is it to get through the Book quickly. My goal is to avoid thenightly battles. My goal is to have the kids look forward to studying the Bookof Mormon.”

GeneR. Cook tells a story about a time when he had been reading stories from theBook of Mormon to his five-year-old son. He says:

“I told him the story about Nephi going back to Jerusalem toget the plates, trying to teach him the importance of having his heroes be theLord's servants in the scriptures, men like Nephi.

After having read the story, I thought I should check hisunderstanding. I asked him, "Son, why do you suppose Nephi had to go backto Jerusalem to get the plates?"

He thought a moment and said, "Well, Dad, I guess theydidn't have anything else to eat on."

I was flabbergasted. Here I was talking of brass plates, andthe only plates this five-year-old had ever heard of were the ones on thetable.

Weneed to check our children’s understanding and being careful not to teach overtheir heads”.

In the Aug 2010 Ensign there was an article by SisterCheryl Lant called TEACHING OUR CHILDREN FROM THE SCRIPTURES. She gave an example of a good way to makesure children are comprehending and applying what you’re reading. She suggest

1. Clearly identifying thedoctrine, ex: What is Heavenly Fatherasking us to do in this verse?

2. Help Children understand the doctrine. Bring it down to their level by comparing itto something they can relate with.

3. Help them apply thedoctrine to their lives.

4. Ask for a Witness ex: bear your testimony that you know this principle or scripture is true.

It doesn’t have to be a formal, “I’d like to bear mytestimony”. A simple “I know this to be true” or “I’ve seen this scripture workin my life” is enough.

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4. Make it Fun

Married and In-laws still had lots of youngerkids at home; I loved participating in scripture reading with them because myMIL would always pass out treats after. If that doesn’t get your kids excited about scripture reading, I don’tknow what will. J

I have a friend that gave me some reallygood ideas for making the Book of Mormon fun.

-For her little kids she does "repeat after me" and they mimictheir verse as I read it out loud

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-They get dolls fromaround the house and act out Book of Mormon scenes. We had Trolls as theGadianton Robbers. . . Her kids likeacting out the war scenes the best. They’re awesome!!! Barbies arereally good for when a person is beheaded.

An article in the LDS LivingMagazine titled: HOW TO GET TEENS TO READ THE BOOK OF MORMON said this:

Idon’t think there’s anything wrong with injecting a little appropriate humorinto your study of the Book of Mormon. For instance, I can’t read about King Noah without comparing him toJabba the Hut. I always picture Sheremas a sleazy con artist-one part televangelist and one part used carsalesman. When Ammormon writes a letterthe Captain Moroni in Alma chapter 54, in which he swears to avenge hisbrother’s death, I can’t help but hear Mandy Patinkin’s voice from the PrincessBride: “Hello, my name is Ammoron. Youkilled my Brother. Prepare to die.”

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5. Each Child should Have their very own Book ofMormon

AgainSister Lant said: “it is important that the children have their own set ofscriptures so that they can hold them, turn the pages, and read the words ofthe Lord directly. Having their own scriptures, they can mark them, becomefamiliar with them, and feel the Spirit from them. They need not be expensivebooks—the simple economy editions contain the same truth as the leather-boundversions—but let them have their own.”

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6. Set the Example

"You cannot lift another soul until you arestanding on higher ground than he is. You must be sure, if you would rescue theman, that you yourself are setting the example of what you would have him be.You cannot light a fire in another soul unless it is burning in your own soul.You [parents], the testimony that you bear, the spirit with which you teach andwith which you lead, is one of the most important assets that you canhave." -Harold B. Lee

I am so grateful for the example my parents set forme.

Right above our kitchen table, my parents had a framedMormonAd poster. On it there was a boxof Light Eternal Food Cereal, a pitcher of milk, a glass of juice, and frontand center was a bowl with scriptures sitting in it. The Poster read, Are Yougetting Your Minimum Daily Requirements? Most mornings as I would come down for school, my mom would be sittingat the kitchen table right in front of that poster reading from her Book ofMormon. From her example I realized theimportance of daily nourishment from the Book of Mormon.

Like the old Chinese Proverb says, “Personal Examplecarries more weight than Preaching”.

I want my kids to see me studying and reading from theBook of Mormon and want to follow my example.

In the last conference, this past Oct, Pres. Monson said, “In order for us to be strong and to withstand all the forcespulling us in the wrong direction or all the voices encouraging us to take thewrong path, we must have our own testimony.”

May you all teachyour children in your lives the importance of the Book of Mormon, and to have adeep love for it. That they may come toknow that Jesus is the Christ. That theywill come unto Christ, and be perfected in Him, is my prayer. . . Amen

Where I spend my time. . .

2012-01-07T14:28:00.001-07:00

Our city's basketball season started just as #3's accelerated fall league ended. 3 of our 6 are playing city ball. Saturdays are going to be busy (but fun) around here for awhile.

What do you get out of being a Mormon?

2012-01-06T09:25:00.002-07:00

Yesterday I listened to a talk by Brad Wilcox. He was talking to a group of students at Snow College about what you get, besides SALVATION, out of being a Mormon.

1. MORE LIFE

Mormon's live 10-11 years longer than those who our outside the Church.

My sweet little Grandma. I miss her.

2. MORE EDUCATION

In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints there's a focus on education like few other organizations in the world and definitely more than any other religion in the world. We believe in education. We get an education to get a life, not just to earn a better living. You will have more education as a Latter-day Saint, and that will enrich your life.

My beautiful Sister-In-Law, who graduated last summer from BYU!

3.PART IN AN INTERNATIONAL NETWORK OF FRIENDS

Anywhere you go on this globe, if you really got yourself in trouble, there would be someone you could call or turn to that would actually care about your predicament. Brother Wilcox talks about when he and his family moved to WY so he could get his doctorate. . . "The First day we were there, we drove up in our big uhaul. We started unloading, and before long there were some brethren there from the church who were helping us out. The neighbors wouldn't believe it. They said, "Who are all these people?" I said, "I don't know." They said, "did you live here before?", "No we didn't live here before, they're members of our church." The Primary President took his children to her house to play, the Relief Society brought a casserole. His neighbors didn't understand that we, in the Mormon church, are still part of a community that helps take care of each other's needs, while the sense of community outside The Church has literally evaporated.

4. STRONGER FAMILIES AND MARRIAGES

Let's just look at the Statistics:

1:2 marriages in this country end in divorce

1:4 end in divorce if the couple shares the same religion (Jewish, Baptist, Catholic, etc)

1:6 end in divorce if the couple is both members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

1:16 end in divorce if the couple has been sealed in an LDS temple.

sealed for time and all eternity it the Salt Lake Temple

I love being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for all these reason PLUS: 1.) I know it to be the one and only true church on the whole face of the earth. AND 2.) Because it makes me a happier person. Who doesn't want to be happy?

I'm Trying To Be Like Jesus

2012-01-04T07:00:00.000-07:00

We decided to have a "Family Theme" or Motto for the year. Something our family wants to focus on. We will take the first Monday of each month during FHE to refocus ourselves and see how we're doing applying this year's Theme to our lives.

This year we chose to be more Christ-like. My sister started it with her Christmas present to our family. She gave each person a Book of Mormon, scripture markers,scripture journal, bookmark, and reading marker with the charge to read the whole book this year, 2012.

She said, " I'm inviting you all to Come Unto Christ through the Book of Mormon. Come for he stands 'with open arms to receive you' (Mormon 6:17). 'Come unto Him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto Him (Omni 1:26). 'Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in Him' (Moroni 10:32).

We chose to carry it a little further, thus our theme/motto, I'm trying to be like Jesus.

If you'd like a copy of this, click image to enlarge, then right click to save and print

I have this in a frame displayed where everyone will see it often, and remember what our family is working towards this year.

New Year. New Me?

2012-01-02T11:37:00.000-07:00

What is my goal for this year 2012?

Ignore the Bad, Praise the Good.

This goes for everything and everyone. I want to ignore the bad things my children do, and really praise them on all the good things they do. That I've come to believe is the way to get them to obey, and become really great positive adults. Don't you like praise better than critisism? I know I do.

This also goes for me. Ignore the things I don't like about myself, and praise myself for all the good things I do.

Everyone and every situation has good in it, no matter how terrible it may seem. My goal this year is to recognize the good, and turn my focus away from the negative and onto the positive.

p.s.- I decided to start the new year off right, and went running this morning. Laughed the whole time as I listened to the Weird Al Yankovic station on Pandora. Can't wait for my kids to listen, they love dumb humor like that. ;)

Hobby?

2011-09-09T06:00:00.000-06:00

I love reading books and blogs about becoming a better parent. I guess you could say it's one of my hobbies. The Eyre's (one of my favorite authors on parenting) just came out with a new book, The Entitlement Trap. I can't wait to read it.

I'm also super excited for this:

It starts today!!!!!

chocolateonmycranium.blogspot.com

beinglds.blogspot.com

theredheadedhostess.com

rovinroberts.blogspot.com

BEANS, BEANS . . .

2011-09-08T06:00:00.000-06:00

Beans, Beans, good for your heart,

The more you eat 'em, the more you fart.

You know the rhyme. . . My sister and I have been getting together just about once a week (hit or miss) to learn about and implement food storage and emergency preparedness. This week we learned about supplementing cooked beans for the fat called for in baking recipes. Want to know how? It's easy, just dump the whole can of beans into a blender and blend until smooth. Substitute cup for cup. For example, if your recipe calls for 1/2 cup oil, you would use 1/2 pureed beans instead. Easy, right? Not only does it reduce the fat, it also adds fiber and protein, which fills you up faster. BONUS!!!!

Now there is one draw back- adding beans will make your baked good fluffier (is that a word?). This is great for cakes, breads, and stuff you want light and fluffy, but I don't prefer it for my fudgey brownies or my cookies. Don't worry, there is a way around all the fluffiness, only substitute beans for half of the fat. For example, we made brownies (from a box) the recipe called for 1/2 cup oil. We only put in a 1/4 cup of oil and substituted the other 1/4 with beans!!!! Still Fudgey, not cakey, and No, we could not taste the beans.

What type of bean should you use? We learned that black beans are best disguised in chocolate recipes, pinto beans in lighter colored baked goods, such as pumpkin, and German chocolate, and white beans for everything else --yellow cake, white, chocolate chip cookies, etc.

Go ahead, TRY IT! I don't think you'll be disappointed.

MUST BE THE MONEY! Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-07T06:00:00.000-06:00

Your Happily Ever After

2011-09-06T06:00:00.000-06:00

I just love this talk by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf. What girl doesn't dream of her HAPPILY EVER AFTER? Being a princess married to Prince Charming. "But such a blessing does not come without a price. It is not given simply because you desire it. It comes only through understanding who you are and what you must become in order to be worthy of such a gift.. . "Happily ever after” is not something found only in fairy tales. You can have it! It is available for you! But you must follow your Heavenly Father. . . embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ! Learn to love your Heavenly Father with all your heart, might, and mind. Fill your souls with virtue, and love goodness. Always strive to bring out the best in yourself and others. You are truly royal spirit daughters of Almighty God. You are princesses, destined to become queens. Your own wondrous story has already begun. Your “once upon a time” is now."

Pineapple Cherry Dump Cake

2011-09-05T20:35:00.000-06:00

I think that on Mondays I'm going to share one of my Families Favorite Recipes. This week I'm sharing the recipe for :

Pineapple Cherry Dump Cake

This dessert is so easy. I've been making this recipe for 12 or more years. I first tried it at a "Basket" party I went to and loved the flavors and the texture and of course that it was topped with whipped cream, YUM! The hostess (I can picture what she looks like and where she lives, but not her name) was generous enough to share the "recipe" with me.

Go here for the recipe.

Sorry there is no photo of this dessert. . .We had the missionaries over for dinner and they ate it all before I could get a photo.

WHAT DO YOU DO IN THE SUMMERTIME?

2011-06-14T16:39:00.000-06:00

This week has been a slow going week. #1 is at a Scout Camp, and we haven't really had much to do. (It's been so nice!) #5 and #6 had a fun time running through the sprinkler, a perfect summer-time activity.

New PHOTOS of the KIDDOS

2011-04-21T14:36:00.000-06:00

Can you tell she's a camera hog?

Which one is your favorite? I can't decide!

DOES THIS DRESS MAKE MY BUTT LOOK BIG?

2011-04-19T22:13:00.000-06:00

Yes that was the question I overheard #5 ask her little sister, #6. Where does she come up with these things?
The past several weeks we have been cleaning out my Gram's house in order to make room for my parents to move in with her. She is still in a Rehab facility re cooperating from a January knee surgery and torn ligaments from a fall right after her surgery. She is expected to be released the first week or so of May! WOW!!!! Her insurance company did a "Dependency Test" on her, and she failed, which means that she is not capable of living on her own any more. My parents have graciously offered to give up their home and move in with her permanently to take care of her. WHAT GREAT PARENTS!!!!
Gram has lots of nice things that she loves, but unfortunately there isn't room for all of her stuff and my parents stuff too. So we are packing up the things she doesn't need, and putting them into a storage unit. The home is getting new carpet and flooring, to make it safer for her to get around. By the way- pulling up carpet staples is NOT a fun job! My parents are paying the grandkids $.05 for each staple they pull up. Most all the kids are at $10 and that was just after a couple hours of working. They might just change their minds when it comes time to pay out.
While going through her things, it's brought back a lot of fun memories. . . when we would visit Gram, my sister and I use to always sleep in a room with two twin beds. One bed had new sheets and the other bed had old sheets that had little fabric balls on it we use to call boogers. It was always funny when I got the good bed and my sister got the Booger Sheets. How we hated those booger sheets.
Or going through Grams 4 clothes closets (yes she saves everything), and playing dress up with our little brother, Willie. He looked just dashing in the chiffon skirt and sparkled blouse with matching high heels we'd pick out for him (yes we were very loving sisters).

Gram with #5

Catch Up

2011-04-15T12:29:00.004-06:00

Child #6's hair is finally long enough to put into pig tails (well just barely). I've spend the last 3 months taking some photography classes through the community school. I've been practicing and practicing, when the kids will cooperate. :)

After many doctor visits, I think I've finally found a doctor who believes my severe fatigue is more than just being mom to 6 children. She ran several tests (17 viles of blood --and not even any juice or cookies after!), and we're waiting for the results. She thinks it may be that my pituitary gland got fried after my placenta ruptured while in labor with #5, and that that whacked gland has thrown everything else off balance. Prayers for a correct answer and quick return of full health would be much appreciated.

WE BELIEVE IN BEING HONEST. . . .

2010-08-29T20:27:00.002-06:00

Big Sister and Little Sister

Our little girls are BFF's and BE's (best enemies). Today BIG SISTER was bullying LITTLE SISTER about every 5 minutes always ending in LITTLE SISTER crying. I'd had it and asked BIG SISTER "Do you like making your sister cry?" She responded with a "Yes!" So now we know!
Our Sweet Little Bully

No time to Post

2010-08-06T08:13:00.002-06:00

I realize it's been a few weeks since my last post. Things have been crazy (as always, thus the name of this blog).
#3, 4, and 5 took swimming lessons. Spicy #5's teacher dumped water over her head (just playing with her)and made her MAD!!!! Plus all 3 year olds (potty-trained or not) were required to wear a swim diaper and plastic pants, something Miss Spicy did NOT want to do because it made her swimming suit "so not cute anymore". So long story short, #3 and #4 took swimming lessons, and #5 got her money back and will try next year.

Have you ever worked super hard and long at something only to have it fail? Rachael's been working on two HUGE, time consuming projects, that she hopes will be successful, and is hoping they won't be a flop like her last huge project did. (Too bad I can't foresee the future.)Ahhhhh!!!!! I guess if she grows during the process it's not a failure. Alright enough boobing.

#2 is getting ready to leave for a 5 day Girl's Camp with our church. She's super excited. (I know a couple little sisters and one mommy that are going to miss her like crazy.)

We (I should say my parents and my sister) have been cleaning out my GG's house. It was full of crap and other disgusting things that I won't mention. There have been 5 Yard Sales, several trips to PAWN and Antique shops, KSL and Ebay Sales, and there is still a TON of stuff left. There will be a garage sale each Sat this month, and I think after that, everything will be donated to Charity. I have been up there helping as much as I can, but with 6 kids and gas prices the way they are, I'm sad to say, it's not as much as I'd like (can you tell I'm feeling guilty?)

Summer Vacation is almost over. 3 weeks until school starts. Where did the Summer go?

Cory turns 11

2010-07-20T21:06:00.009-06:00

still blowing (magic candles courtesy of GG)
My grandma Luke (we call her GG) would always use the candles that would relight. She got such a kick out of it. She thought she was being sneaky, but when you use them for everyone's brithday, we're going to catch on. She would just laugh and laugh as she watched you blow and blow.

Not yet Cory. . .. keep trying.

Sweet present Cory!

Friend party at Nickel City

Favorite photos from the 4th

2010-07-20T20:34:00.005-06:00

(Daddy can you see?)

(Grandpa playing "this little piggy" with Kami)

(Cory and Kaitlyn hiking the Bridal Veil Falls trail)

(Aunt Kim and Kami)

(Blake up in the falls)

(waiting for the parade to start)

(Kim and Preston)

(Rachael's first and last 5k)

BUSIEST WEEK EVER!!!!

2010-07-04T19:58:00.007-06:00

In case anyone is wondering why the Collins are so testy. Let me share. . .

MONDAY- - - - - - - - -- - - - -- - - - - - - - - -- - - - - -- - - - - - -- -

Took Gram D on a little FHE picnic up the canyon. Roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. We had a great time. Cory did a lesson on the First Vision.

Oh yeah! Granny likes her roasted marshmallows

TUESDAY- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - -- - - - - - -

Blakers last game. He was super excited about the participation medal he received!

AND

Court of Honor for Mason. He earned another 10 Merit Badges. He currently only has 2 required MB left to earn (camping, which he has just a few more campouts to attend & hiking). Then he will be doing his Eagle Scout project. Once that's completed he will have enough extra MB for 2 palms. GO MASON!

WEDNESDAY - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Spent a good portion of the day in Midway cutting grass at GG's and clearing out and organizing more stuff for an Estate Sale we had Fri and Sat.

THURSDAY- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Spent all morning baking double batch of Chocolate Chip cookies, homemade Oreos, and Cinnamon Rolls for the Estate Sale. Kelsey off to her 4-hour Stadium of Fire practice, Doctors appointment, and back up to Midway getting home around Midnight.

FRIDAY- - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Up and off to Midway for the Estate Sale at 5:45 am. Grandma came over to watch kids and take Kelsey to another Stadium of Fire practice this time at 7:00 am. Estate Sale went good made $1000 today. 4:00 home and off to help with Kelsey's dress rehersal. She did great especially after spending ALL DAY in the hot hot sun (98 degrees today), sunburned ears and thighs, and NO SLEEP. The dress rehersal was held in the Stadium and was for the whole show. We didn't buy tickets (because after spending $200 for Kelsey to dance in the show, there was no way to buy $35+ tickets) so I was so glad to get to go to this. Kelsey is a great dancer with some amazing talent. Home at 11:30 pm

SATURDAY- - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

5:00 am came way to early this morning. Off the help at the Estate Sale. Kelsey and boyz spent the night last night at Grandma's to get in a few extra hours of sleep. Up at 7:00 am. Kelsey back to Lavel Edwards Staduim by 7:45. Pick up Kelsey, drop of Gram car (don't ask) go home, take nap, get Kelsey dressed and off by 5:00 pm, pick up Gram D, drop her and Mason off at the Stadium of Fire (lucky ducks), fight our way back through traffic and finally to the Fireworks party at Rachael's parent's. No rest for the weary. . . .after homemade root beer and ice cream, there's just enough time to prepare for the Young Women's lesson I have to teach tomorrow before it's FIREWORKS TIME.
Didn't make it to bed til 12:30 am

SUNDAY- - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- -- - - - - - - - -

This is how most of us looked from 2:00 on after getting up to place flags at 6:00, BYC at 9:00, Fast Offerings at 9:30. Getting 5 kids and myself dressed and ready for church without a husband to help, and doing the Ward Newsletter in between. (Can't believe we made it to church on time!)

CONGRATULATIONS CORY! --- BASEBALL CITY CHAMPIONS

2010-07-04T19:33:00.003-06:00

The A's were in first place when the regular season ended. They then went to Tournament and placed 1st in that too. Now they're on to State. . . .I'll keep you posted.

Kelsey's team The Twisters placed 4th in the regular season and are also on to Tournament.
Keep your fingers crossed.

"THE" GAME

2010-07-04T18:50:00.004-06:00

Cory played against his BFF (do boys call each other that?). They play all together in the backyard, but this time it was "for real". It was a fun game to watch.

Cory played 3rd Base His friend, K, pitched

THE GAME

and for those of you wondering . . . .we won!!!

Rachael's New News

2010-07-01T06:29:00.005-06:00

Rachael finally put some of her recipes into a downloadable 4 x 6" Recipe Book called

Now don't you want one? Go here to get your own copy. :)

More baseball news and other stuff coming soon. Until then download your recipe book and make a batch of Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes.

Transformers and Dog Poo

2010-06-25T11:40:00.004-06:00

Last Saturday, Clint and I drove past our sweet little Comfort Inn on the way out of town to see this Bad Boy Semi getting tons and I means TONS of attention.

There were tons of people taking pictures, Kids were being held up by their parents to peek inside, women were weeping, and men were giving high fives (Ok, not really, but almost!) We couldn't figure out why there was so much excitement over a flamed semi. We figured it must just be a "small" town thing. Today I sat down to read our "small" town newspaper and low and behold there on the front page was that blasted Flamed Semi. The article began "Unbeknowest to most of [our town] we were actually being protected by the famed Transformers. yes, I said THE TRANSFORMERS!" ha ha --So that's what all the hoopla was about.

Since our family doesn't like Dog Poo in their Brownies, we decided a long long time (about 14 years) ago that we would stay away from PG13's. Thus we had no idea about Optimus Prime and his so-called powers!!!! We just thought it was a "Small" town thing that we didn't understand. :) Ok, so I apologize for judging my small town peeps. . .for now anyway.

A Look into

2010-06-16T19:41:00.004-06:00

Life at the Ball Park . . .

from left to right, top to bottom

1. The proud Grandpa

2. Poor Grandma being stuffed in the car as we made our way to the next game of the night. Before we could even get the car in reverse, she was yelling at us to "Open the door! I'm getting a stomach cramp." Must be hard being so tall (I wounldn't know)

3. Grandpa stuffed in the car. (Hey! I offered to let them drive. . . )

4. Pres rolling (sommersaulting) down the hill.

5. KC at bat

6. KC's fan club

7. KT with Auntie Kim

8. Blakers rolled down the hill right into Pres (if he'd been bowling it would have been a strike).

9. The proud Grandma

SUNDAY COOKIES

2010-06-14T10:37:00.005-06:00

My dad (holding baby Kaitlyn)

Yesterday Clint and I came home to these after a long afternoon of meetings after church. Chef Mason had been making his specialty again. The delicious smell took me back to my childhood days. Every Sunday, from as far back as I can remember, someone would always make a batch of Chocolate Chip cookies. Sometimes we'd eat them all, and sometimes we'd share them and take a plateful to a neighbor or someone in our church. (A few times I even took some to Clint!) Mostly dad, would just eat the dough. Dad still loves chocolate chip cookies. Mom makes a double batch for him every week. Not sure if dad still snacks on the dough, but I do know that he now breaks up his cookies into little pieces and drops them in a glass of milk (lactose free, mind you) and eats them with a spoon.

Nothing says loving like warm cookies from the oven!

HAPPY FLAG DAY & Anniversary to Nate & Nicole!

Good Clean FUN!

2010-06-13T16:03:00.004-06:00

AMAZING, SIMPLY AMAZING

2010-06-11T22:22:00.007-06:00

I stayed up into the wee hours of the morning reading all about this wonderful family. It made me want to be a better mother, wife, and person in general. But mostly it reminded me to never EVER take my life for granted. Cherish every moment. I'm so grateful to my Maker for all I've been blessed with especially my calling as wife to my best friend and mother to 6 beautiful children. Sappy, I know. But watch this and then read this then tell me it doesn't make you feel the same way.

Oh & CONGRATULATIONS cousin Shelli (& Chris) on getting hitched today. . . Woo Hoo!!! Wish we could have been there.

PARTY AT OUR HOUSE

2010-06-10T21:55:00.005-06:00

Dearest Clint-

Today we had a PARTY! Sorry you missed it. It was a cry party. . . Kami cried because she wanted a blue mini Book of Mormon to "read" during scriptures tonight, and we could only find a red one. Cory cried because he thought Blake was trying to leave him out of the prayer circle and mostly because Kami's crying was bugging him. Blake cried because Kelsey told him to get out of her room. Kaitlyn cried because she ate too much Mexican Corn Salsa yesterday and has a sore derriere. And I cried because I miss your guts!

Will Saturday EVER get here?

Thinking sweets thoughts of you,

Rach

TUTU much Fun!

2010-06-08T21:53:00.005-06:00

Thanks Grandma for the Tutu's.

SHHHHH!

2010-06-08T20:52:00.006-06:00

Don't tell the BSA police that I snuck up here

to see this H-O-T-T-I-E

and

do this. . . . .

oh and Sweetie- when you come home you're going to have to leave your scout hat and put on your handy-man belt. We've had a few issues around here. . . like the vacuum blowing up, and the stair railing falling off .

Can't wait to see you. Want me to sneek up again tomorrow?

Love, Rach

Love Letter

2010-06-08T10:23:00.006-06:00

To my "scout camp-ing" sweetheart,

While you are away wrestling bears, and teaching boys (including ours) how to do MANly things, I'm sitting at home thinking of you. If only Scout Camp could be for the whole family (although you know how much I hate to camp- but if it meant being with you, I'd do it.)

Today, our sweet little daughter #5 decided to be a big helper by locking ALL the doors to our borrowed van in order to keep Little Sister from getting in the car. That would have been so sweet of her if only the keys to that said van weren't in the ignition, now locked in the car.

Needless to say, I left Helper and her little sister at home with our Awesome older kids while I spent an hour of ME time making the drive to Provo and back to get a spare key. By the time I returned both Helper, little sister, and most of our Awesome older kids were asleep! YES!!!!

I miss you- Oh how I wish it were Saturday.

Love, Rach

Picnic, Cupcakes, and Bosch!

2010-06-04T11:18:00.006-06:00

Don't you just LOVE a good Chocolate Cupcake with Sprinkles?

lots and lots of them?

Kams and I spent some quality mother/daughter time baking delicious chocolate cupcakes. I frosted, she sprinkled. . . and boy did she sprinkle!
YUM!

Our Memorial Day celebrations consisted of Clint and Mason waking at the crack of dawn to put up PVC flags for their Boyscout fundraiser (a task they will be doing every "Flag" holiday.), a small picnic out in the backyard, kids playing with friends, me getting sick that night and going to bed at 7:30, kids coming home late, eating the dinner I almost didn't make, and Clint and Mason collecting the flags.

Want to win a BOSCH mixer? Go here (well maybe don't so I'll have a better chance to win just kidding. . . )

This blog has some great ideas and recipes too.

Glenwood Springs Colorado Trip

2010-06-01T11:43:00.017-06:00

IN HONOR OF:

Clint's Littlest Brother - Russell Wayne Collins
Eagle Scout Court of Honor
and

High School Graduation

The Eagle Scout The Proud Mother and The Scout Master

WHAT WE LOVE ABOUT GOING TO BETTY AND TERRY'S The Humble Abode

Great Views

Nintendo 64 - BABY!

Lots and Lots of LOVE

Up and Down 100 times a day
Cousins to Play with
and Aunts and Uncles too . . . .

Basketball Games (inside and out)

Good Food and Good Cooks

Science Experiments by Mason

Naughtiness

Sleepy kids and meltdowns (lots and lots of them)

waiting for Russell to walk

Finally after waiting through 6 Valedictorian Speeches. . . .. It's official!!!
Babies with Aunt Deborah and BABY BUMP courtesy of Aunt Nicole.

Blake and Jake (how cute they rhyme)
Aunt Tanya from Mesa, AZ & Uncle Bob from Tucson (not pictures) were there too.

Happy Memorial Day

The Walk, Kami Style

2010-05-31T13:56:00.003-06:00

& of couse, don't forget a sweet mommy to hold your hand.

SKILLS

2010-05-31T13:44:00.004-06:00

Oh yeah! Not only is he good looking, but my man has got some serious SKILLS. . . .

"You know like nunchuck skills, bow hunting skills, computer hacking skills", enough Napoleon Dynamite. . . . Check out what Clint's been up to.
Downstairs Bathroom Remodel

Look at the end results. "Sweet!!!!"

FEET- a post by Kaitlyn (with a little help from her mom)

2010-05-31T12:56:00.007-06:00

My Feet are awfully bare. What should I do? I know. . . .Mom's High Heels.

They go perfectly with my outfit. The question now is: Can I walk in them?
So far, so good. . .
Oh Yeah! Check out my sexy calves.
And they "heart" me too.

IF Anyone has seen our Little Girl, PLEASE return her!

2010-05-27T16:34:00.007-06:00

Kelsey graduated from elementary school this past Tues. Where has our little girls gone? She has been replaced by a beautiful woman.

who has the best of friends . . . .

and a hunky dad and brothers

and waltzes with boys (and a cute one at that!)

Congratulations Kelsey! We are so proud of our "little girl".

and to celebrate, what better than SNOW CONES from the best Snow Cone shack. . . .

Kelsey with her teacher, Mr. Wilson

Sparkles Please

2010-05-27T16:13:00.003-06:00

Kami's favorite pink dress started losing its toile petticoat (could it be bacause she wears it ALL the time? ? ?). So we sent it to Grandma's house for some TLC. Here was the conversation between Kami and Grandma today:

Grandma: Oh! I fixed your dress, but I forgot to bring it with me. I'll stop by my house and grab it and bring it when I come back. (grandma had picked up the boyz to take them up to mow GG's lawn.)

Kami: Ok Grandma, but can you add some sparkles to it too?

Did You Know?

2010-05-25T12:35:00.003-06:00

Did you know I have a princess for a daughter? If always wearing something Frilly, Twirly, or DISNEY makes you a princess, then yes, we have royalty in our family. Lucky us.
Kami loves dressing up. . . skirts, necklaces, and lipstick are a must! When we were cleaning out my grandma's house (the one who just recently passed away) Kami found a tube of lipstick and asked my dad, "Grandpa, can I keep this for GG till he gets back?" Grandpa laughed, and let her keep it. We sure love our Princess Kami. She always keeps us smiling.

Anyone up for a FRIEND-ly game of Kickball?

2010-05-25T12:20:00.006-06:00

Our family is always up for a good game of Kickball. We play it almost everyday. Saturday we had some friends over and what did we do? Played Kickball, of course!

-- THE TEAMS--

Mason with his friends, Antonio Tubby and Conner Perterson, and Cory

Kelsey with her friend Oyate Tubby, Blake and Clint.

Catch it Cory!!!!!

Clint going in for the dive. . . .

I "HEART" LILACS

2010-05-25T12:03:00.004-06:00

One thing I will miss when we move is our lilac bushes we have in the backyard. They're so BEA u tiful not to mention the smell is HEAVENLY!!!! Maybe I can transplant them? It takes so long for baby ones to mature. Can I be patient enough? Hhhmmmm.

This is one of my favorites of the girls. It will need some lightening, but I'm for sure enlarging this and hanging it up in our new house (whenever and whereever that might be).

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

2010-05-23T20:07:00.005-06:00

Cory has only struck out once so far this whole season, the rest have been hits.

GO CORY!!!!

What Cute Spectators . . .

Dance Review

2010-05-12T13:36:00.005-06:00

Kelsey is an amazing dancer, which is something that just comes naturally to her. She's been making up dances since she was itty-bitty. We finally got her into a dance class & she loves it. She'll also be performing in the Stadium of Fire this July. Kelsey was lucky to have her Grandma and Grandpa, Grandma Dorothy, and Aunt Kim come to watch her Dance Review. She did amazing. I was in awe the whole time I was watching her dance.

Kelsey's Hershey Track meet 2010

2010-05-12T13:28:00.004-06:00

Kelsey is a fast little runner, just like her dad. She placed first in all her heats. The little girls and I had a fun time playing and cheering her on.

Disneyland April 2010

2010-05-12T09:54:00.007-06:00

18 Months Already?

2010-03-18T16:50:00.001-06:00

Daddy-Daughter Luau Date

2010-03-18T16:33:00.001-06:00

Blake's Book-The Camping Day

2010-03-18T16:23:00.005-06:00

Blake's 2nd grade class has been working on writing and illustrating their own stories. Finally after a lot of hard work, their books were ready to share. Blake's "true" story was about when he and Dad went camping. Dad couldn't figure out how to set up the tent so Blake set it up for him. . . and everything was great! :) After they read their book to 3 parents they celebrated with cake and punch!

Grateful to be Back Outside

2010-03-18T16:11:00.003-06:00

Cory playing a little round of Lightning with his friends - Kaiden and Jacob

Such Nice Weather- Let's Go to the Park!

2010-03-18T16:00:00.004-06:00

Merry Christmas

2009-12-17T11:07:00.000-07:00

Baptisms for the Dead

2009-12-17T10:30:00.004-07:00

Mason and Kelsey did temple baptsims for some family names the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
Grandma and Grandpa went too along with a member from their missionary ward. She just joined the church in July so this was her first time to attend the temple. :)

Mason has gone several times before (none of which I remembered my camera), but this was Kelsey's first!

Mom and Dad with their ward member, Brunel.

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-12-17T10:27:00.002-07:00

This year we were able to go to Clint's parents house in CO. 6 out of his 7 siblings were able to make it as well. Lets just say, it was a FULL HOUSE!! We had a fun time playing with cousins, baking, and talking!

First Snow of the Season

2009-12-17T10:19:00.002-07:00

Clint's Birthday!

2009-12-17T10:08:00.004-07:00

Rachael gave him a reading light because he always sticks a pillow over his head while she stays up reading and he's trying to sleep. :) It's one of those presents you really buy for you!

Kami was the ice cream scooper! She gave everyone little tiny scoopfuls.

LOOK AT ALL THOSE CANDLES!!!!

Kelsey turns 12!

2009-12-17T09:49:00.003-07:00

Kelsey and 4 of her BFF's went laser tagging. Then came back to our house for cake and ice cream and night games.

Hannah, Kelsey, Brooklyn, & Laura

KAMI'S BEAUTY SALON

2009-11-04T11:29:00.005-07:00

Kelsey's such a great big sister.

and YES, that is a garter belt Kami's wearing on her head. No idea where it came from, but she insists it's a bow.
"How do you want me to do your hair Kelsey?"

Kaitlyn's 1st Birthday - September 18, 2009

2009-09-19T16:01:00.006-06:00

Playing with her presents!

Kissy baby. . .

Grandma and Grandpa Collins gave her this butterfly dolly.

She loved, loved, loved this Princess Phone.

Kami, Kelsey, & Mason eating their cake.

Kaitlyn tried to touch the flame on the candle. When Blake yelled, "Don't, that's Hot!", she got her feelings hurt and cried. Finally after a lot of coaxing, she finally decided to try it. There was no stopping her after that.

She couldn't get enough, including the wrapper.

Happy Birthday Kaitlyn!

Labor Day 2009

2009-09-14T11:10:00.005-06:00

Of course we went to the Onion Day's Parade. We sat with the Petersen's and Kim and Preston. Here we are just playing a little Uno while we wait for it to start. Kami's covering her ears because the fire trucks just came by with the siren's on. She hates loud noises.
UNO!

Mason's making out a list of what he plans to do with his B-day Money!

We had a good time! No rain this year. :)

Later that afternoon we borrowed our neighbors canoe and went canoeing on Payson Lake.

Blake getting ready to go out!

Kaitlyn wouldn't stay out of the dirt! She kept wanting to climb over the 3 ft. drop ledge.

Preston playing in the lake.

Kami and Kaitlyn had fun playing in the water too.

Mason and Kelsey waiting their turn.

Aunt Kim on baby watch!

Now it's finally her turn to take the canoe out on the lake.

Just trying to keep Kate contained! She was eating everything! YUCK!

We have a TEENAGER in the house!

2009-09-14T10:50:00.004-06:00

This year Mason wanted an ice cream sandwich cake.
It took him 2 tries. He better practice up!

Mason got a Teenager's Handbook, a sleeping bag, beef jerky (his favorite), and a Nerf Gun

Grandma and Grandpa Collins and Uncle Russell were in town for the festivities too.

Can you say MESS!?!

Mason opening up $$$ and candy from G&G Collins & Uncle Russ.

Mason had a party with his friends, the following Friday, Sep 11th. They went to play Laser Tag, then came home and watched Karate Kid II, and ate pigs in a blanket, chips, rootbeer floats, candy, and cookie cake.

Opening gifts

Think he likes what he got. . . . $5 from Brigham Baller.

Candy and a flashlight/glowsitck/whistle from Conner Peterson.

Clint! It's not your birthday! :)

SCHOOL TIME AGAIN!

2009-09-14T10:30:00.004-06:00

I think this year they were ALL ready to go back to school. It's nice when it works out that way. . .

Cory- 4th grade (Ms. Tuckett)
Mason- 7th Grade. (His 1st year at Mt. Nebo JR. High)

Blake- 2 Grade (Ms. Newton)

Kelsey- 6th Grade (She has 2 teachers this year, Mr. Wilson & Ms. Cloyd)

And Poor Kami- no grade, but wishes she was going to school with the rest of them.

August in a Nutshell

2009-09-14T09:36:00.006-06:00

Kaitlyn turned 11 months old!

Kami loves to play in the Acura. She can get in it by herself. We have to remember to lock the doors!

Kami is also into dress-up and playing princess, especially if she can get big sister, Kelsey to play with her.

We cleaned out our shed. We took a whole car full (I'm talking the Expedition with no seats in it) of crap to D.I. AND another car full and trailer full to the dump. Where did all this stuff accumulate from?

We hiked the Grotto with Deborah and Karl.

Kami thought she was a big as the rest of them.

Help! We've also got a two-year old into nail painting. She wants to paint not only hers, but everyone elses!

The Grotto Falls

The boys are into ping-pong ball fights. A neighbor gave us a HUGE box full (we're talking 1,000's) of ping-pong balls.

Kelsey at Kami's Beauty Salon

Our Little Scouters!

2009-07-31T12:31:00.004-06:00

Obviously Mason didn't pose, but. . . .
ScoutMaster Clint sure did! :)
Kaitlyn was super excited for Mason

Troop 92 (well some of them anyway)

Mason earned 10 merit badges this court of Honor. (First-Aid, Fingerprinting, Emergency Preparedness, Enviromental Science, Family Life, Canoeing, Leather Work, Indian Lore, Wilderness Survival, and Art) He now has a total of 14, and he also earned his Star Rank, and a bag of candy for 10 merit badges earned at one court of honor. Way to Go Mason!!!! Not too shabby for not even being 13 yet.

Mason being presented with his awards

This is Mason's Scoutmaster. Isn't he a hottie?

Pioneer Day 2009

2009-07-27T13:28:00.005-06:00

We met at Kim and Steve's house for Hot Dogs and Fireworks.

Kami would not sit through the 4th of July fireworks-She was scared to death! I guess it helped to cover her ears. :)

Mason was the designated lighter this year.

Is this a drive-in movie or what? Still got those ears covered.

Vacation- Day Three

2009-07-27T12:55:00.005-06:00

Cherry Hill Water Park

Lunch Anyone?

Vactation-Day Two

2009-07-27T12:21:00.005-06:00

We spent the night in Montpelier, ID (pronounced Mount-pelier) and went to the Oregon Trail Museum. The next morning we drove to Soda Springs to see the geyser.

There she Blows. . . . .

Blake and Cory ran through it like a sprinkler.

After Soda Springs we drove to Lava Springs where we ate Square ice cream cones. Then it was off to the home of the famous Napoleon Dynamite- Preston Idaho.

"Tina, you fat lard, come get some DINNER!... Tina, eat. Food. Eat the FOOD!" Where's Tina?

This is like the best place to discuss selling Tupperware. . . . .

Don't you just live LIGERS- It's like a lion and a tiger mixed... bred for its skills in magic. You know, like nunchuku skills, bow hunting skills, computer hacking skills...

We were hoping they'd be having a meeting of the HAPPY HANDS club while we were there. . . .

Bear Lake- Vacation Day One

2009-07-25T19:27:00.004-06:00

Tuesday, July 21 we drove to Logan, UT and spent the night. We went swimming in the Hotel Pool. The next day we drove to Bear Lake.
Kelsey and Cory building Sandcastles

Clint and Kami making a sand castle

We had fun playing on the beach.

Cory

Mason and Kami going for a swim

Kami got her first pair of Flip-Flop for our trip. She loves them and would not set them down.

Blakers

Kesley

Kami

Some sisterly bonding.

Kaitlyn

Kaitlyn played in a little pool on the beach.

Cory turns 10!

2009-07-25T19:14:00.003-06:00

Friday, July 17, 2009

A SWEET electric scooter!

Wii game and Jerky from Grandma and Grandpa Collins.

Cory wanted to go bowling for his birthday. . .

Kami won!

LOVE CAKE

She Crawls!

2009-07-13T14:33:00.003-06:00

Katie learned to crawl this week. She is so excited that now she can keep up with the big kids. She is everywhere and getting faster everyday. It's hard to believe she'll be 10 months in a week. She doesn't want to go to bed now that she has so much freedom!

TEA PARTY-Pinkies Up!

2009-06-22T14:58:00.005-06:00

The Hostess

The invitation

The guests- Cory, Blake, Kelsey, Kami, Mason

Cory is such a good sport to dress up like a lady . ... ha ha ha.

Isn't he pretty?

Blake wore a necklace, but wasn't going for the dress. lol

Aren't they pretty?

Super cutie-bug

Father's Day 2009

2009-06-22T14:50:00.002-06:00

Our kids have the best Daddy.

CHEERS!
Happy Father's Day to you . . . .

It's "Dad's" rootbeer

TREE SWING!

2009-06-22T14:42:00.003-06:00

Mason and Clint made a swing in our big tree. The kids love it.

Kelsey's the only one that would really let me take her picture. . . . can you tell?

9 Months Old Already?

2009-06-22T14:31:00.002-06:00

Kaitlyn is super sweet. She's still just an ity-bity thing. Probably just over 15 lbs. (We'll find out Thurs.)

We call her Bucky! Look at all those teeth! 7 in all. 5 on the top 2 on the bottom.